Attack of the Dark Master
by Serious Cacodemon
Summary: Weeks after Parace 'L Sia's defeat, Heart discovers a book which eventually leads her on a quest to save the world of Hato-lon and the universe from the evil Dark Master. Rated M for blood, violence, and language. HeartXOC.
1. The Heartful call for help answered

**Chapter 1 - The Heartful call for help answered...**

The attack came faster than the world expected. The world, named Hato-lon, has been struck by darkness. An evil lord of darkness who simply calls himself the "Dark Master" has seized the kingdom, imprisoning the populus, and holding the daughter of the kingdom, Princess Hantvica, inside the castle dungeons. Everyone lived in fear of the Dark Master, as the entire world fell into total darkness in a few short days and stayed like this for 10 years. Hato-lon became a quivering hollow shell of it's former self.

Almost 10 Years ago, At the council of Warlocks, witches and warlocks were discussing how to take care of the evil. Months have passed since the fall of Hato-lon, and they were running out of options at this point. They tried everything they could to repel the Dark Master, but casulties were piling up.

"This has gone on far enough," One of the warlocks said, "None of our magic powers are able to effect the Dark Master, and we are running out of options. Anyone with any possible options left?"

"I-I don't know anymore," One of the witches said, "We are helpless against him."

One Warlock rose up. He looked like he was in his 40s, having dark gray hair, and stood about 5 foot 11. "I have one last option though," He said, "There has to be someone from the world called 'Earth' who represents the very foundation of love. Gender or age doesn't matter. The only one who knew the power of love in this world had since been slain by the Dark Master. We cannot harm him. Only defend ourselves from his dark, hateful magic."

"What do you suggest we do?" The witch replied.

"We are going to create a necklace, and place a pure love filled gem on it, with the power to protect from the Dark Master's evil magic. One of us will place our essence inside the gem, and the necklace will be sealed inside a book, talking about our history. Half the book will be blank so we can place the necklace inside and hide it. Only one believing in love will be able to open the seal protecting the necklace."

"Our call better be answered. As of now, the Dark Master is getting ready for a ritual which requires 10 years to finish. One which spells doom for the whole universe. All life as we know it being obliterated by pure hate energy."

"You mustn't worry. It will find it's way to someone before then. I will volunteer to put my essence into the gem."

After the council was adjurned, the Warlocks and Witches constructed the necklace, silver in color, and around the size of an amulet. A pink gem was infused with magic that protects from the Dark Master's own magic and placed into the necklace. One warlock wrote the complete history of Hato-lon from what it used to be all the way to the current state it was in. Preparations took months, and by then, tyranny spread across much of the world by then. Forced sacrifices, raiding of villages and towns, genocide. Once it was assembled and the necklace placed inside the hollowed area of the book, the book was brought to the ritual hall to be sent off to Earth. Using a teleport spell, the Warlocks and Witches of the council teleport the book off to Earth. Nobody noticed about it until a book enthusiast from Misono Female Academy saw it, and decided to bring it to it's library.

**Almost 10 years later, Planet Earth**

At Misono Female Academy, the cheery Heart Aino was looking through books at it's library, while Saki Tsuzura was standing nearby puzzled. "Heart..." Saki asked, "Why are you so anxious to find this book in the first place?"

"Maori told me this book was special in some sort of way," Heart replied, "and I want to see if this is true."

"I don't know why Maori believes that. It's just a legend. It may not even be true."

Heart finally found the book she was looking for. The Warlocks titled the book "The fall of Hato-lon" on there. She looked at the cover of the book, and the book was big as a text book and looked like it had about 400 pages inside. "This is it, Sa-Sa!" She said.

"Please stop calling me Sa-Sa..." Saki responded, "Anyways, that's the book? I expected it to be... more ancient..."

"This book looks like it's brand new, but it's hard to believe it's been around for almost 10 years!"

**Later, after school...**

Heart, Saki, and Maori were walking from the gates of the academy. "That must be the book I told you about," Maori said.

"It sure is, Mao-Mao!" Heart replied.

Saki still wasn't keen. She didn't think the book was that special, and her childhood friend seemed very interested in the book. Heart let Maori take a look at the book while the three were walking home. "This is a very mysterious book," Maori told Heart, "Looking at the title of the book. It sounds like the story involves a kingdom falling into darkness. But what caused it to happen?"

"Maybe we can have a look through it later!" Heart asked, "Maybe our other friends may be interested too!"

"That's sounds like a good idea. Perhaps we can all meet outside Cafe Aino later so we can check out this story." Maori replied cheerfully, "I'll also see if my family and the others are interested too."

Saki sweatdropped. She couldn't believe Heart would actually go this far to show a book like this to all her friends. To Saki, Heart has always been of disregard, although she is lucky that Heart was there for her during the previous instincts involving the boundaries of the worlds.

**Much later, outside Cafe Aino...**

Heart and several others (Saki, Maori and the rest of the Kasuga Family, Kamui, Konoha, Lilica, Yoriko, Akane, and Nazuna) gathered around, as Heart opened the book and began to start reading the book. Lilica didn't seem interested, but then again, she really didn't care much for literature. From what Heart read, the entire kingdom was peaceful and capable of great things, until it was slowly becoming corrupted.

Nearby, Kira Daidohji was walking, all while getting annoyed by Catherine Kyohbashi's constant babbling about certain things. "Would you please stop talking about that, Catherine?!?" Kira said angrily to her. After she said that, she noticed the others that have gathered around Heart, while she was reading the book. Kira grinned and snickered a bit. "What are you thinking of doing Kira?!?" Catherine said.

"None of your business!" Kira rudely replied.

Kira walked by casually towards the others. Kamui looked closely at her as she got closer. "What are you up to now, Kira?" Kamui asked.

"Nothing, except that THE DARK MASTER KILLS AINITA HELLEN IN THAT BOOK!!!!" Kira replied, spoiling the rest of what is written in the book.

The others gasped and had shocked looks, as well as Catherine nearby did. Heart's face was in shock, and tears started forming from her eyes. She closed the book and ran inside the entrance of Cafe Aino, crying out loud. Tsuzune looked at Kira with a pissed off look. "How dare you, Kira!" She said, "Spoiling the book like that!"

"That book is incredibly dumb, and I don't know why you all are reading it in the first place!" Kira replied, as she walked away laughing evilly.

Catherine walked up to the others. "Mei-Ling Hua is going to find out about this," She said, "As if her ambitions for world conquering weren't bad enough."

"I don't get how she became a maiden in the first place, that ungrateful little brat..." Tsuzune replied.

Saki walked inside Cafe Aino, looking for Heart. "Heart!" She shouted.

"*sniff* I'm not in the mood, Sa-Sa..." Heart replied upstairs.

Saki's face became more crossed. Not because of Heart's sudden change in mood, but because of what caused Heart's sudden change in mood. Kira had complete disregard with everybody else, and it became much more apparent than it did during the boundary meltdown wars. Saki walked out, and as the others walked away, Kamui still stuck around. "What are we going to do?" Saki asked her.

Kamui looked down. "I don't know," She answered.

"I hope Heart doesn't end up like this forever. It isn't like her to act like that."

"I'm sure she will forget about it overtime and be what she used to be. Be patient."

**Cafe Aino, at Night...**

In her room, Heart was still depressed and sad, although her mother was there to tuck her in at night. "Don't worry, Heart," her mother said, "It happened. Nothing you can do now."

"But I don't feel well..." Heart replied.

"Get some rest, honey. You'll feel much better tomorrow."

Heart's mother kissed her in the forehead as she pulled the sheets over her. "Good night, Heart," She said as she walked out, turning off the lights on the way out.

"Good night, mom," Heart replied, as she slowly closed her eyes as her mom closed the door to the room.

Heart tried to fall asleep, but try as she could, she was unable to fall asleep. The big spoiler which Kira shouted out during the afternoon was serious enough that it made Heart upset and depressed at the same time, something which rarely even happens to her, considering she was almost always in a happy mood her entire life. Despite hearing the spoiler, Heart had the thought that perhaps it isn't a spoiler at all, and wanted to look back inside the book again. She turned on her lamp and took out the book, and flipped over to the halfway point of the book, the part which was the spoiler itself. She was at the end of the written pages area, and all the other pages seemed to be blank. Heart frantically flipped through the blank pages, hoping that there were pages that actually continued the story, until she accidently ripped a page out of the book, revealing the hollowed out area, and inside it, was the necklace the Warlocks and Witches have forged and stuck inside the book. Heart was no longer depressed, but now confused. "What's this?" She said, as she pulled out the silver necklace.

She felt around the necklace, until her thumbs reached on top of the pink gem in the middle of the necklace's front area, and all of a sudden, light poured out of it, and out of there, came the Warlock who volunteered to place his essence inside of the gem. "Sorry if I alarmed you," He said.

"Who are you?" Heart asked.

"I am the Warlock of Guidance, Encental Garane. I'm from the council of Warlocks from Hato-lon."

"Hato-lon's real? So that means everything written in the book is real?"

"It is unfortunate the story was spoiled, but spoiled or not, the situation at Hato-lon is very grave, as well as that of your world and every other world in existence."

"Every world in existence?"

"Yes. You already know the Dark Master cast the entire world into darkness and killed the only one on the world to stop him. He used his dark, evil, hateful magic to turn the entire world into a nightmare. Bodies of water turned to bodies of lava, trees are lifeless, everything green has been made gray. Villagers were slaughtered, executed, or worse. Children were sent to the dungeons of the Dark Master's castle to be raised as slaves, and livestock is taken away. Now, we all live in fear of him. Fear for that he will do further harm to us. Now, he seeks to wipe out the entire universe just for sport."

"T-that's horrible! I've got to do something about it!"

"That's where I'm getting here. You look like the kind of person who knows of love, judging by the heart shaped ahoge in your hair."

"That's me! I'm the Maiden who seeks the power of love, Heart Aino! Love can solve any problem! I just wished everyone else knew."

Heart's Arcana, Partinias, was listening on this at this time. "And I am the arcana of Love, Partinias." She said.

"Ah. Much more perfect." Encental replied, "You two will be able to do very well against what will be up ahead. Heart, Partinias, with the amount of love radiating out of the both of you, you will have more than a chance to defeat the Dark Master, who even now, is getting closer to destroying the Universe. I don't know how close he is now to achieving his goal, so we must make haste. I advise you get ready right now, Heart Aino."

Heart got up out of bed, and went into her closet to get her school uniform, and on the way to the bathroom to get changed, she grabbed the red ribbon she always used when battling against evil. After Heart closed the door to the bathroom to get changed in there, Partinias talked with Encental. "Heart's a very helpful girl," She said, "I think you made the right choice to call for help."

"The necklace was set to awaken me inside the gem on it if the person touching it believed that love can solve any problem." Encental replied, "Although, how are you able to talk to me as well?"

"I serve Heart, so her problems are also mine, although I can't really intervene, only allow Heart to use my power as needed."

No sooner did the two finish talking did Heart walk out of the bathroom, school uniform on, ribbon tied on and all. Encental walked up to Heart, holding the necklace with his two hands. "Here," He said, "You will need to wear this. I cannot risk you dying to the Dark Master's evil magic like it did to Mistress Ainita. I will also be able to guide you along the way while inside the gem on there. I know much about the world of Hato-lon, and since you will be going in without knowledge of our world, I will hopefully be very helpful to you."

"Thank you, Encental," Heart replied, as she took the necklace and placed it around her neck.

Encental chanted a spell to open a portal near the window of Heart's room, and just by seeing the portal itself, the world on the other side looked very evil. Heart had a shocked look on her face, but she swallowed her pride and dashed right through the portal, with Encental following behind her. When she came out the other side, the two find themselves standing before a forboding castle. Encental returned inside the gem on Heart's necklace. The castle which Heart stood before was incredibly huge. The walls around the castle were extremely long, but not that high. The central part of the castle looked extremely huge, having a couple of tall towers extending up into the clouds, which were at quite a low height. Bolts of lightning were crashing down around the castle. Before she could have any thoughts of whether to go inside the castle or not, the castle gates bursted open and out came a horse with a couple of people riding on it, along with a very nasty creature chasing after them. Heart jumped out of the way into the lifeless bushes as she observed what was going on...


	2. Heart's Journey Begins

**Chapter 2 - Heart's Journey Begins...**

The creature chasing the two on the horse appeared to be a black skinned, black haired werewolf of sorts. It ran towards the tail of the horse and lunged up to it, sinking it's teeth into it, causing the horse to whinny in pain and send the two riders flying off of it. One of them was a male in his early 20s wearing an outfit partially armored, and another was a girl in her early 20s wearing a green-grayish looking gown, and wearing a crown on her head. The werewolf creature spent no time in rushing towards the man and attacking him. The two were clashed into battle, and Heart was watching this from behind the bushes. The creature eventually managed to knock the man's weapon out of his hand. 'Oh no...' Heart thought, 'I need to help him!'

Heart jumped out of the bushes and dashed towards the evil creature, shouting: "Please Dear Angel, Fight by my side!"

The monster was inches away from gnawing at the man's face, until it's face got kicked, releasing it's grasp on the man. He looked up and saw Heart standing. "Who are you?" He said, "What are you doing?"

"I'll take care of this," Heart replied.

Heart brought out a couple of love energy balls, one which hit the monster, causing it to whince in pain. While it was stunned, it didn't see Heart charging towards with a Love Tekken Punch, knocking it back to the tree. The monster rose back to it's feet, but as it tried to charge forward to attack, it dropped down off of it's feet to the ground, and then it burst into pink flames, leaving behind only it's scorched bones. The man and woman that were knocked off their horse watched the whole thing. The woman got up off her feet and walked up to her. "Thank you young lady," She said.

"Happy to be of service!" Heart replied, as she turned around with a smile.

"You're not from this world, are you?" the woman asked, "This world is in very dangerous times. Everyone in the world has to live with the laws that the Dark Master has set up, and him locking me up in prison."

"But you are no longer there, are you?"

"That is true, but that doesn't mean I can't end up there again. Chris here, the prince of Heart-Heart island, came to the castle to get me out. We are madly in love with each other."

"That's so sweet. I wish you two a happy life together!"

"I'm Princess Hantvica of the main kingdom of Hato-lon."

"I'm Heart Aino, the Maiden who seeks the power of love, and my Arcana is Partinias, the Arcana of Love."

Hantvica heard the exact words that Heart said. She then realized that the warlocks and witches of the Warlock Council called for help almost 10 years ago, and then it hit her like a cement truck. "You must be the one who answered our call for help!" Hantvica said.

"Encental filled me in on the situation in this world," Heart replied, "And it's so depressing here that I had to come here for help!"

"You're so selfless, Heart." Hantvica said, smiling, hugging Heart.

More creatures started jumping inside the perimeters of the castle. "Hantvica!" Chris said, "We've got to get outta here! You too, Heart! follow us!"

The three got onto the horse, and rode the horse across the path through the forest. The forests were now very lifeless. Many of the trees have lost most of their leaves, and all the leaves were now a sickly pale gray. Same with the grass. The trees also looked like they were transforming into twisted, evil versions of themselves. The three continue riding on horseback while the werewolf creatures continued to chase after them, with some of them starting to run to the sides. "Shit!" Chris said, "They are trying to surround us!"

No sooner did Heart take action and started shooting beams at them, stopping each and every one of the creatures in their tracks. For good measure, she shot off a large beam towards the huge group of them that was behind the three and the horse they were riding on. When the beam vanished into thin air, there was no more trace of the monsters chasing after them or trying to get in front of them. Chris and Hantvica breathe a sigh of relief. "Thanks for covering us, Heart," Hantvica said, "We shouldn't have anymore difficulty getting to Aino village now..."

The three continue riding off several kilometers ahead on horseback, through the forests. After a long ride, the three arrive at Aino Village, where the three got off the horse and brough them into an animal shed, and begin to walk through the barren village. Heart saw that the village was completely wrecked. Windows smashed, some houses in a state of disrepair, and even skeletons were littering the streets! Some of the villagers, now covered in ragged clothing, noticed the three's arrival. "It's the Prince and Princess!" One of them said.

"But who is that girl behind the princess?" Another one said, "She looks like a weirdo!"

Heart got a bit angry. "I don't appreciate being called that!" She replied, "Where's your manners?"

"She's quite a talkbacker. Why should we listen to someone like her?!?"

"Who does she think she is?!?" Another villager said.

Princess Hantvica got angry now. "That is enough out of all of you!" She said, "How dare you look down on your only hope for our world! She saved our lives!"

"She's our last hope for our world? She needs to bring it up with the mayor of this village! We don't believe she can save us all!"

Princess Hantvica turned to Heart. "Hmph." She said, "People in this village can be so ignorant. Me and Chris were going to see the mayor anyways, and report on my safe arrival here."

The three walk through the ruined village, until they came up to an abandoned tavern. Heart was curious on why they were going into an abandoned building in the first place. The three enter this ruined tavern. Everything inside was smashed to pieces. Tables, chairs, even some of the stools were smashed up and now gathering dust. Heart continued following Chris and Hantvica until they came up to a meat storage room. Heart felt confused on why they were in this room, but Chris pulled on one of the meat hooks inside the room, to reveal a secret passageway. "Ever since the Dark Master attacked us," Chris said, "We've always had to rely on the hidden tavern for safety from his minions."

The three walk down the stairs. The stairs were decently lit, although littered with cobwebs and slightly dusty. At the end of the staircase was a small room with a door at the end, and boxes nearby covered in a lot of dust. Chris walked up to the door and slammed on the knocker. The view slide opened up, revealing a pair of tired looking eyes. "Prince Chris! You're back!" He said, "And it looks like you rescued the princess too!"

"I can't take all the credit," Chris said, facing towards Heart Aino, "This young girl here was the one who helped us to escape from the Dark Master in the first place."

"Wait... She reminds me of lady Ainita! Please, come in and meet with the mayor at once!"

The man then opened the door to allow the three to go through. As they walked through the bar, some of the people were laughing, and others were complaining about Heart. "That girl with the pink hair looks like an idiot!" One man holding a cup of ale asked.

"She's too young to be going out in a dangerous world like this!" Another man said.

"You've got to be kidding me! This ditz is our last hope for the entire world?!?" An elderly woman said.

Heart couldn't take it anymore. She had enough of their insults. "You are all so heartless!" she said angrily.

"You think we're heartless? You're not the boss of us!" The man with the cup of ale replied.

A door opened near the bar table. "That is enough, all of you!" The man said from the door.

The man looked towards Heart, and then looked at Prince Chris and Princess Hantvica. "I'm glad you made it back here safe with the princess, Chris." He said.

"I wouldn't have gotten out if it wasn't for this girl here," Chris replied, his eyes pointing to Heart Aino.

"By the... Gods..." The mayor replied, "Could she be what I think she is? Please, you three, come into my living room immediately."

The three followed the mayor into the living room. Heart felt the warmth of the room. Everything inside the room was tidy, and the fireplace was burning brightly and lively. There was a bookshelf nearby with books inside, mostly concerning with stuff about the new world that Heart was in right now, and there was a table in the center of the room. On the table were some tea cups, and a container with sugar cubes inside, as well as plates. "Please, make yourselves at home," He said.

The three sat around the table. The mayor returned with a pot filled with tea and poured inside the teacups. "Times have gotten very desperate my friends," He said, "The ritual for our world's destruction is nearly close to complete, and in about a week's time, the ritual will be complete, and life as we know it, will cease to exist."

"Can't we do anything about it?" Chris asked.

"You and Princess Hantvica won't be able to deal with it, I'm afraid," The mayor replied, "And I'd like to talk to the girl with the pink hair about the matter."

Heart Aino had a curious look on her face. "Me?" She asked.

"Yes, you. Allow me to introduce myself first. I am Zio, the mayor of Aino Village. Even in times like this, I want to make sure my people are safe. Anyways, I understand you helped Chris and Hantvica escape from the castle, and you almost resemble the late Lady Ainita Hellen, the wielder of love."

"I believe that love can solve any problem in this world. I want to help people, but there's people who won't let me."

"By the way, what is your name?"

"Heart Aino. The Maiden who Seeks the power of Love..."

Those words clicked inside Zio's mind. "Heart Aino? THE Heart Aino? The Maiden who vanquished the evil Mildred Avallone? The Maiden who stopped the boundaries of worlds from melting down? I can't believe you're actually here! Someone like you has to be the bane of the Dark Master's existence!"

"Wait! You already know what I did?"

"Word may not travel in your world, but it travels to other worlds, and fast on top of that. We have been researching your world and the Elemental World, even in dire times like this. Your world has advanced farther than we have, and now you are here, having answered our call for help."

"Encental was the one who brought me here in the first place."

"Encental is a good man, and he will be able to help you on your quest to stop the Dark Master. However, there is one problem with facing off against him..."

"What?"

"Even with your ability to harness love, even with Partinias on your side, the Dark Master has a protective barrier which prevents all magic from getting to him. In order to shatter his barrier permanently, you need to explore Hato-lon and find seven gemstones. Each one of them has the magical power to burn magic used by those with an evil mind. The Dark Master and his minions cannot touch them, so he has appointed several guardians to guard these gemstones with their lives. If they are touched by someone with an evil heart, then unless they have some way of holding onto it, then it will feel like they are holding a piece of hot coal. If they are touched by someone with a kind heart, then they will feel the coolness of a breeze. Once you find all seven of the gemstones, you will be able to have them merged with your necklace into a more powerful one with the power to shatter the dark barrier the Dark Master himself uses. You will then be able to defeat him once and for all."

"Where can I find these gemstones?"

"One is found inside our very own village, one is found at an abandoned castle, one is on an island where the late Ainita Hellen rests in peace at, one is inside a city taken over by a blood cult, one is found inside a large network of mine tunnels, one rests inside a tower amidst an eternal blizzard, and the final one rests at a colloseum guarded by the Dark Master's greatest guardian."

Hantvica added in, "But how is Heart going to get to these locations in time before the Dark Master's ritual is completed?"

"You are underestimating Heart's capabilities as a maiden, Hantvica," Zio replied, "Her timing has always been punctual when it comes to saving the world, and besides, we have many modes of transportation around the world which can help her to beat the time the Dark Master needs to finish the ritual. She can beat the time right down to the punch!"

Hantvica turned to face Heart. "Heart Aino," She said, "You are our only hope. Please don't let us down..."

Heart placed her hands over Princess Hantvica's. "I won't let you down," Heart replied happily, "And I'll make sure of it!"

"Thank you very much for making me feel better," Hantvica replied, tears now starting to form in her eyes.

After the four finished sipping their tea, Heart walked out of the door, wanting to get her adventure started. Although everybody in the village still had doubts about her, Heart shrugged them off and concentrated on what she needed to do: finding the gemstones. The first order of business was to search around and ask some people where they think they might know of the location of a gemstone inside the village. Every person she met and talked to, gave her either a rude response, telling her they didn't know where the gemstone is located, or telling her that they could not help her at that time. Still, she never gave up searching...

**Meanwhile, back at the castle taken over by the Dark Master...**

The doors to the throne room opened, and through the door walked a tall humanoid monster, armored and buff looking. "Master," It said, "I have bad news: Prince Chris escaped with Princess Hantvica."

The Dark Master had a slightly angry face. He appeared as a 7"5' tall man, wearing black armor over almost his entire body. His hair was dark green and short, and had a short beard on his chin. He was sitting at his throne, until he got up to speak to the humanoid monster. "You failed me, Golkon," He said.

"It wasn't our fault. Some girl with pink hair intervened and helped the two get away on horseback." Golkon replied.

"What girl? Tell me, what does she look like?"

"Shorter than either the prince or princess, wearing an orange skirt, a white shirt, knee-high socks, light blue shoes, and a couple of things around her neck. Her hair also has a heart-shaped ahoge..."

"WHAT?!? That sounds like that traitorous scum Ainita Hellen! But it can't be her! I killed her years ago! Who is she?!?"

"Before I called out for more of our minions to pursue them, I overheard her saying her name being... Heart Aino."

The Dark Master's eyes opened wide and he clenched his left fist. "What? The Maiden who seeks the power of love?!?" He said in an angry voice.

"Yes, her."

"That stubborn girl is responsible for the defeat of Mildred and Angelia Avallone, as well as the defeat of that life energy stealing Parace 'L Sia. She is extremely dangerous and is not to be underestimated. I'm going to continue letting you be in charge of your own squad, but I cannot count on you to stop her. Someone more competent is going to be sent out to go after her. Do I make myself clear, Golkon?"

"Very clear, sire."

"Good. Now leave me, before I get really pissed off!"

Golkon turned around and walked out of the throne room. He was pissed off that Heart was able to deal with some of Golkon's own army. What turned out to be a simple capture mission became botched very fast because of Heart's arrival on Hato-lon. Back at the throne room, the Dark Master's son, his alias being the Dark Prince, walked in. He was around 5"3', and a year older than Heart. He walked and kneeled before his father. "What is the problem, father?" He asked.

"Clarion, my son," The Dark Master replied, "We've got a serious problem with our plan. The bane of Mildred's existence, Heart Aino is on this world. She is to be captured and brought to me, or killed if she resists. She harnesses the power of love, which is the opposite of the power I hold, that is the power of hatred. She has left the castle gates and is most likely headed for Aino Village. She wears a white shirt, an orange skirt, knee-high socks, light blue shoes, and she has brown eyes and pink hair, and she has a heart shaped ahoge on top of her hair."

As Clarion heard the description of Heart, something clicked inside his head, as if he knew someone like her before. "Clarion?" The Dark Master said.

"Oh, sorry," Clarion replied, "My mind must have wondered."

"Don't let it wonder, my son. You need to be on full concentration when confronting her. If she can defeat arch angels and life stealers, then you should not take her lightly."

"I'll remember that, father."

Clarion turned around and left the throne room. He never cared about anyone and only did what his father told him to do. However, as soon as he heard the description of Heart Aino, he felt a different feeling within himself. However, it was only temporary as he quickly forgot the feeling as he left the castle on horseback to pursue her.

**Meanwhile, back at Aino Village...**

Heart already talked to just about everyone in the village, but the answers she received weren't the ones she was looking for. There was only one place to look at left. She approached the last building in the village, and knocked on the door. "Yes?" Someone said through it.

"Uh, do you know where I can find the first gemstone in this village?" She asked.

Heart heard crying inside the building, and she wondered if she offended whoever was living inside that home. "I didn't mean to upset you," Heart told the person.

"You didn't mean it. It's just that, what you said reminded me of what is going on inside our tower in this village..." The person continued to say through the door, still crying.

"Is it something I can help you with?"

"No. Unless it's the someone which the council of Warlocks and witches promised they would send here. They haven't made their promise in almost 10 years."

Encental spoke through the gem on Heart's necklace. "That's where you're wrong," He said, "Because the person you're speaking to right now did in fact come from the world we called for help to."

The door opened to reveal a woman wearing a bloomer, with an apron over the front area, and having long hair. She was in her early 30s, and her eyes reflected like that of a puddle of clean water. She took one look at Heart, and she almost broke down in tears. "Oh my god!" She said, "It's you! The legendary maiden who seeks the power of love!"

The woman hugged Heart tightly, leaving Heart completely confused, and also suffocating because of the woman's grip on her. Quite a few people already knew about her. Before Heart could speak a word while stuck inside the woman's arms, she was dragged inside the house. "Uh, miss, could you please let go?" Heart asked, "I like hugs as much as you do, but you're suffocating me..."

The woman let go of Heart. "Sorry Heart," She said, "My name is Erina. My husband entered Aino Tower over a week ago and he still hasn't come back."

"And that's where the gemstone is located at?"

"Not just the gemstone. It's also being used for a slaughterhouse where people in this village are being taken to for execution. It used to be a work house where much of the things we use in this village are located at. Now, it's not only a slaughterhouse for villagers like us, but the women and children are being brought into the tower for imprisonment, where they will watch some of their husbands and fathers get eaten alive by the creature on top of the tower. My husband wanted to do something about it, but he hasn't been seen since. I fear he suffered the same fate as the others."

Erina broke down in tears and began sobbing. Heart Aino had a serious look on her face. "That is so cruel!" She said, "And I only know a bit about what the Dark Master has been doing in this world!"

Erina was still crying loudly. Heart wanted to do something to stop her from crying. Erina felt Heart's arms going around her. Erina turned her head to face Heart. "I'm going there to stop those who are imprisoning those poor people," Heart told her.

"Thank you," Erina replied as she stopped crying.

"So where do I get to this tower?" Heart asked.

"It is located at the end of this village, past the destroyed Tavern. Beware though. It's crawling with those awful werewolf creatures and even some huge muscled knights, and it also has lots of giant spiders inside as well. Please don't die, Heart. You're too young to die..."

Erina then began to cry a bit as Heart let go of her. "If I am destined to save this world and also everybody in the universe, I have no choice. Everybody's existence depends on me now." Heart told her.

Heart then turned around to walk out of the door. "Watch yourself, Heart..." Erina said to her.

Heart walked back to the destroyed Tavern, and then walked around it and went past it. There was more forest for her to go through, but she eventually caught sight of a tower. However, it looked dark and evil now, because of the Dark Master's influence over it. It probably used to be a more lively tower when the world wasn't taken over by the Dark Master. However, Heart didn't know that she was now being pursued by others now.


End file.
